ML42988881

Observation details

Look at old photos and saw this and sent it to a raptor id group. Experts confirmed it as the first (confirmed) Walla Walla County record of an Eastern Red-tailed Hawk. Features supporting this is the small patagial marks, white throat, thin bellyband and unmarked flanks. Mike Borle, raptor expert, believes that Eastern are more common in the state of Washington then originally believed, seeing many Eastern-ish Red-tail photos in southern BC and Okanogan Valley. Eastern do breed on the eastern front of the Canadian Rockies so it is not unexpected to have several go through passes such as Pine Pass in BC. #1/18/2020 Update: I am sending this sighting back into review because it's been declined twice(?) without a reviewer actually telling me why this checklist is not being accepted into ebird's public database. This hawk has been identified by several experts from HawkWatch as indeed the first confirmed WA record of a borealis Red-tailed. Features supporting this includes thin patagials, white unmarked underwing coverts, light bellyband, white throat and unmarked white flags. In fact I was told this was a textbook example of borealis. As a note to the reviewer, if this is still going to be "declined' can you please forward me a reason via e-mail. Thanks.